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Today, Congressman Kevin McCarthy announced that the U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs (VA) issued a lease award for $39.7 million to build a new Community-Based Outpatient Clinic (CBOC) in Bakersfield, California, to improve access to care for Bakersfield and Kern County veterans. Congressman McCarthy issued the following statement:

“Our veterans have sacrificed so much for our country and there is no commitment we must uphold more than our promise to them for access to quality medical care in state-of-the-art facilities. For our community that also means care close to home rather than having to travel to Los Angeles.

“After years of delay, including the California high speed rail project’s realignment – which forced the VA to start over -- I want to commend President Trump and Veterans Affairs Secretary Wilkie for taking action and issuing a lease for a much-needed new clinic in Bakersfield. This announcement is a major victory for our veterans and a huge step forward for this project. But we have to keep working together to see this project all the way through. I look forward to working with Secretary Wilkie and the VA to see the new Bakersfield CBOC open its doors as soon as possible.”

Background

In the U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs’ (VA) Fiscal Year 2010 budget proposal to Congress, the VA requested authority to build a new CBOC in Bakersfield to expand primary care, mental health, and limited specialty care services to “meet the demands of the projected workload” and to help ensure “veterans’ travel times are not excessive.” The current CBOC was opened in 1992.

Subsequently, Public Law 111-82 was enacted on October 26, 2009 in which Congress authorized the VA to enter into a lease to build a new CBOC in Bakersfield. Public Law 111-82 passed the House by voice vote.

The VA was expected to make a lease award for the new Bakersfield CBOC in January 2016, but was informed by the California High Speed Rail Authority that the site selected for the proposed clinic was directly in the path of the newly revised high speed rail project alignment forcing the VA to start over.

On September 28, 2018, the VA awarded a $39,732,000, 20-year lease to San Diego-based SASD Development Group LLC to construct a new 30,100 square-foot CBOC in Bakersfield on a parcel of land along Knudsen Drive of land near the intersection of Knudsen Drive and Olive Drive.

According to the VA [hyperlink to attached VA press release], the new Bakersfield CBOC will provide upgraded mental health, women’s health, and homelessness services, in addition to other services.